Travis Stork, one of the hosts of TV's The Doctors and an emergency room physician, is serious about weaving exercise into his life even when his schedule doesn't allow for a workout.

He bikes to work, always chooses to take the stairs, paces while talking on the phone and frequently stands for meetings and when using the computer. "It all adds up over a day and ultimately, your life," the 41-year-old says. A devotee of whitewater kayaking and hiking, Dr. Stork lives by his maxim, "Working out shouldn't feel like work."

Stork and other health-savvy celebrities share their ideas for reducing stress, sleeping better, exercising and living an overall healthy life in the magazine USA TODAY The Best Ways to Stress Less, Sleep Better, on newsstands now.

His insights on:

Living a healthy life. "Good health usually starts in the kitchen. Working out shouldn't feel like work. Don't ignore the importance of sleep and managing stress. Most importantly, make health your hobby, but not an obsession."

Managing stress. "One word: exercise. I am living proof that exercise can be nature's perfect mood stabilizer, and science backs it up. Like everyone else, I often feel stressed out but if I'm able to get outside and go for a walk or hop on my bike, my stress quickly becomes more manageable. I can't tell you how many times I've felt stress and the minute I start to sweat, I instantly feel better. If I can't get outside then I slowly count to five while taking a deep breath and repeat the count on the exhale. That works well in acutely stressful situations in the ER, for instance.

"When you are dealing with life and death in your job -- that can create a lot of stress. I spent a lot of time early in my career trying to learn how to deal with the stress that goes along with making daily decisions in the ER that have huge consequences. It's something they don't teach you in medical school so I had to learn how to manage it over the years."

Getting enough sleep. "If I'm managing my stress, eating right and getting plenty of exercise, I usually sleep great. Of course, that doesn't always happen. Multiple studies now show how important sleep is when it comes to our overall mental and physical health including our waist size. The high-stress poor-sleep cycle is one that has to be broken, myself included, and some tips I use: No electronics in the bedroom, no late-day caffeine, I write down important to-dos before bed and I try to wake up at the same time every day.

"I try to get at least seven hours most nights. Now that I'm in my 40s and the evidence continues to mount showing that good health is difficult to achieve without adequate sleep, I place a lot more emphasis on sleep than in the past."

Dealing with sleepless nights. "I try not to force it. If I'm having a sleepless night I will take a break from trying to fall sleep, and I will read. Usually reading does the trick, and it helps me avoid the mental frustration of trying to fall asleep."

Weaving exercise into his life. "Although my schedule doesn't always allow a formal workout, I weave activity into my daily life so that when days or weeks go by and I haven't been to the gym, I've still been active. I have biked to work for the past 20 years. It's actually quicker many days than driving. I always take the stairs, I get up on my feet and move around during phone calls, and it's not unusual for me to stand during meetings or even while working on my computer. It all adds up over a day and ultimately your life."

Enjoying food while managing weight. "I eat foods that I love that also happen to be good for me. I learned a long time ago that I won't eat food that I hate just because it's healthy. My recipe for success is making sure every meal has protein and fiber to keep me from overeating, and I limit simple carbs like sugar and refined grains like white bread.